PST chief: – Difficult to uncover surveillance equipment – E24

PST chief: – Difficult to uncover surveillance equipment – E24

Bjørnland confirms that Aftenposten information about mobile spying was not known to the security services earlier and says mobile base stations are difficult to uncover.

– You can have a suitcase, sitting in a car outside a building and that set eavesdrop a conversation. It would be very difficult to be in place to detect, says PST boss said.

The newspaper findings suggest that large parts of central Oslo covered by coverage radius of false base stations in six areas, also called IMSI -fangere. It makes it possible to capture, record and tapping signals from mobile phones.

– There is reason for concern, but I think it is too early to state with certainty whether the investigations Aftenposten has done. National Security Authority has made its own investigations, and they come with a report with the very first. Then we will see whether there are grounds for implementing specific preventive measures, or an investigation, says Bjørnland.

unbeknownst who is behind

There is still uncertain who is behind the monitoring equipment .

– If it turns out that there may be state actors behind illegal base stations in Norway, then it is a matter for PST to investigate. If there are private operators, and it goes in the direction of such industrial espionage, then it is a matter for the ordinary police, said Bjørnland on.

Political it has come reactions that such monitoring at all can take place around several of the country’s main political institutions.

Bjørnland says that PST has prioritized reducing vulnerability to the vulnerable people in the current government and previous governments.

– Both previous governments and the current government has been sikkerhetsbriefer from PST where we have pointed out that it is particularly vulnerable when talking on mobile phone. We advise them to use either encryption care or neglect to talk about sensitive issues on mobile phone, she said.

– We have over years in our national threat assessments pointed out that intelligence threat against Norway is high and persistent.

Taking the matter seriously

Prime Minister Erna Solberg (H) insures that the government takes surveillance matter extremely seriously.

– If we uncover illegal surveillance, it will be prosecuted, says Solberg (H) said.

She says that the authorities are conscious when it comes to use of mobile phones.

– We also have alternative systems for the exchange of sensitive and classified information, said Solberg.